The Problems with Medical Marijuana

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I was diagnosed with PD 4 years ago. During that time, I have used exercise as my primary treatment for PD. I credit the exercise with my slow progression during that time.

Unfortunately, a few months after I was diagnosed, I foolishly allowed my neurologist to talk me into taking Mirapex. I was lucky to survive this drug. The final straw came when I literally fell asleep at a stop sign while driving. I was fortunate that I didn't kill myself or someone else due to this dangerous drug!

The exercise was effective in combating most of the symptoms of PD with one key exception: tremor. Over the past 4 years, my tremor has continued to get worse and is quite noticeable and irritating. Therefore, a little over a year ago, I decided to try medical marijuana, even though I had never used marijuana or any other illicit drug in my life. I found the medical marijuana to be very effective with my tremor and also many other aspects of PD, including urinary urgency/frequency; fatigue; sleep problems; and more. It seemed to be a miracle drug and best of all had no side effects.

During this past year of using medical marijuana, I have discovered a couple of significant problems with taking this drug. For one thing, I discovered that medical marijuana is not hospital friendly. I have had a couple of kidney stones during the last year that landed me in the emergency room. Needless to say, PD is made greatly worse by pain and stress, and when you combine that with not being able to take your medicine (medical marijuana) while in the hospital, that can be a real problem. My tremor absolutely exploded while in the hospital. It was as if someone taking Sinemet suddenly stopped taking their medication amid severe pain and stress. Not good! I can only imagine how bad it would be if I was admitted to the hospital for surgery or some other serious condition for an extended period.

Another problem with using medical marijuana is traveling. Some states still treat marijuana possession and use quite seriously. I have an upcoming road trip that will cross many states, and using medical marijuana on the trip could be risky.

A final problem is the idiotic DUI laws in many states. Many states use a ridiculously low concentration of marijuana in the blood or urine as the standard for determining when a person is impaired. When you consider that this level would be exceeded even if a person hasn't consumed any marijuana for weeks, this could be a real problem. A few months ago, I was pulled over for something, although the cop couldn't really articulate what I had done. I got a warning and was told to "drive safely". When he was talking to me, he noticed my tremor and commented that I appeared nervous. I held up both arms and pointed out that I was only "nervous" on my left side and explained that I had PD. However, if he had done a field sobriety test, could I have passed? My balance is pretty good for a person with PD, but I'm not at all certain that I could pass even though I wasn't impaired in the slightest.

So, the bottom line is that medical marijuana is a fantastic drug. Unfortunately, there are some real problems that have to be considered when using it as your primary PD drug. As a result, I have tried a couple of other things which I will detail in other posts.

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Thanks for the update. There is a lot of things you stated that I would not have had the foresight to think of.

In the state of New York medical MJ is legal with a prescription. However, if you are pulled over you can be sited with driving under the influence, if you have a child in your car under the age of 16 you will be charged with a felony of child endangerment. Some laws just don't make sense.

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Some interesting points that I had not thought of. I would definitely be interested in trying MMJ in lieu of having the upcoming DBS surgery, but unfortunately I live in TN where it still isn't legal.

You mentioned the example of not having your medicine while being in the hospital, which can often be a problem even with the mainstream drugs. I was in the ER this past Spring with the stomach virus and in horrible pain from not being able to take my Sinemet, but I just couldn't seem to get the ER doc to understand the need to get my nausea controlled quickly so that I could take it. They tend to think that it's only a "shaking thing."

My MDS also told me of a patient that she had that was admitted to a hospital for an unrelated illness. When the doctors examined her, they questioned who had told her that she had PD because she looked very good to them (she was properly medicated). They then informed her that she did not have PD and discontinued all of her related medications. A few days later they had to call my MDS to ask what to do because the patient had totally locked up and was unable to eat. So beware ANY time that you have to go into the hospital.

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I don't use the medical marijuana . I have had family members that have suggested and even urged me to try but being a gun owner in a liberally controlled state like NY, If it prescribed I believe it is on the list that gets your guns taken ( hunter) . I have a friend in California with MS and the use of marijuana has allowed him to drop 22 pills a day from his daily intake . But he won't get a prescription for the fact that he enjoys the shooting sports ( Non hunter ). I do use a low dose sinement along with exercise to control muscle stiffness but it does nothing for the tremor . I had a procedure done a couple months ago where I was put under and the Dr said while I was out the tremor was not present . But I agree that anyone that considers The Marijuana road to do your research as each state has different regs . The Democrat controlled states seem to have more stringent regs than the others .

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I know a few people who use edibles for their hospital stays. Its an option if you want to be stealthy about things. Got to be careful with edibles, though. Very easy to go overboard. During all my hospital stays, I had a continuous supply of Dilaudid via IV, so there was no desire for additional medication.

Yeah. The DUI thing sucks. The illegal aspects suck. My state is zero tolerance on Marijuana and driving. Same for meds like benzos or narcotics. If you keep a low profile, Its much harder for a cop to detect marijuana use than booze during a normal traffic stop. DUIs for weed are very rare around here. The local cops dont want to bother hauling someone in for a blood/urine test, and they havent caught on to mouth swabs. All bets are off if you are involved in a serious accident, though. Best recommdation there is to make sure all your equipment works and follow all traffic laws. Don't give the cops a reason to stop you. Or don't consume.

I have been pulled over and questioned about my symptoms. One went as far as having me perform the field sobriety test and breathalized me. I showed him the cane, handicapped tag, and my medical alert card. He apologized and sent me on my way.

I've not found marijuana to be particularly effective in resolving any of my PD issues. It does, however, have excellent anti-nausea properties and stimulates appetite, which has been key with all my GI related surgeries/infections. Most perscribed anti-emetics are contradicted with PD, so MJ seems to make a great alternative. I believe MJ, like every other PD drug works differently for each individual.

I'll also say its good at relieving mild to moderate pain (nothing beats the narcotics and steroids, though, for crippling levels of pain). It also helps with sleep.

Have you tried the pure CBD oil yet? I can buy it at any smoke shop around here and it seems to offer many of the benefits of MJ, without all of the legal headaches that come with MJ. I find vaping it to be the most effective form of delivery.

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There is a reason for laws about driving and marijuana. When I was a teen many years ago, I drove after just a few tokes, and managed to scrape the side of the car against foliage for more than 100 yards - and didn't realize it until I pulled away from the foliage. Fortunately nobody was injured, but this rightly scared the c**p out of me, and I never drove that way again.

Many prescription drugs can make driving unsafe; just because medical marijuana is legal in a state doesn't make driving under its influence safe. I'm really glad that MM helps so many people, but I sure am uncomfortable with the idea of them driving under the influence of it.

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There is a reason for laws about driving and marijuana. When I was a teen many years ago, I drove after just a few tokes, and managed to scrape the side of the car against foliage for more than 100 yards - and didn't realize it until I pulled away from the foliage. Fortunately nobody was injured, but this rightly scared the c**p out of me, and I never drove that way again.

Many prescription drugs can make driving unsafe; just because medical marijuana is legal in a state doesn't make driving under its influence safe. I'm really glad that MM helps so many people, but I sure am uncomfortable with the idea of them driving under the influence of it.

Wouldn't recommend immediately driving after a few tokes, either.

However, many state laws are zero tolerance for marijuana in your system. In my state, you could have taken those few tokes a couple of days prior to an accident, tested positive during the accident, and be arrested for OWI. Makes about as much sense as drinking half a beer and then getting arrested for OWI five hours later.

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One of my friends was also diagnosed with PD and was prescribed with medical marijuana in San Jose. Luckily, the results were really promising and he did not even discover any other issue, as you have mentioned.